5 Reasons to Print Your Photos

Photography has gone through plenty of changes, from Polaroids to disposable cameras to DSLRs, and back again. What we do with the photos we take – that’s changed a lot as well. While our hard drives fill with .JPGs and our social media feeds populate with selfies, the role of photo prints has shifted.

Before you let another year go by where your photos only exist in your smartphone, here are 5 reasons why you should print your photos.

1. Create Memories that Last

A printed photo is more than temporary pixels on a screen. It’s a memory you can hold. Hang it on your wall at home. Frame it for your desk at work. Take it out years from now and pass it around to reminisce with friends and family. While this digital era facilitates instant connections, photo prints create timeless connections – across generations, amongst childhood friends, and between yourself and a moment you’ve long since forgotten.

2. Share Photos with your Non-Digital Friends

Many of the people you care about (and many who care about you) may not be able to see the photos you post online. That could be intentional – perhaps you don’t want your neighbour to have access to all your Facebook photos, but printed photos allow them to skim through a photo album or two at your dinner party. Or maybe it’s circumstantial– grandparents and kids who might not have an online presence, but would still love to flip through your photo book.

3. Create a Better Photo Collection

When you go to print your digital photos, you don’t print all of them. (That would be a bit much!) As you select which photos make the cut, you’re essentially curating your photo collection. And in doing so the process can actually make you a better photographer. Which photos are better than others? Why? Look at the results of different lighting, zoom, angles and framing to see what’s working for you and what isn’t. Next time you pull out your camera, remember that.

4. Be Proud

Whether you’re a beginner or a professional photographer, you take pride in your best shots. When you print photos and frame them, it creates a sense of accomplishment. And if your friends or family enjoy your photography enough to put it on display in their own homes, that confidence gets a major boost.

5. It's So Easy

Most of your photos live on your phone, so it makes logical sense to order prints directly from there. Download the Costco App to place an order in seconds. Just tap on the photos you want to print – from your phone’s photo album, Facebook or a cloud drive – select a size and quantity, and you’re done. You’ll receive an email when your prints are ready to pick-up from your local Costco Warehouse. What you do with them after that is up to you!